Legendary Broadcaster Dick Enberg Passes Away at 82

Hall of Fame broadcaster Dick Enberg passed away yesterday at his home in La Jolla, CA at the age of 82. His daughter, Nicole, said the family became worried when he didn’t arrive on his scheduled flight to Boston. He was found dead of an apparent heart attack at his home, his bags packed.

Enberg was one of the leading announcers for the NFL for years, being teamed with former player Merlin Olsen. The team was second only to John Madden and Pat Summerall in popularity. He worked everywhere through his career including NBC, CBS, and ESPN. He also worked a wide variety of sports events including Super Bowls, major league baseball, college basketball, and Wimbledon tennis. His last regular position was the voice of the San Diego Padres, a job he retired from in 2016 after seven years with the team.

He also won multiple honors throughout his career, including the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Gowdy Award (1995), the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Rozelle Award (1999) and the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Ford C. Frick Award (2015). But his memorable catch-phrase was simply “Oh, my,” an exclamation made for a bit play or home run. It wasn’t flashy, but conveyed the right amount of emotion and very appropriate for the moment which suited his style perfectly.

His 60-year career started in Armada, MI at a small radio station where he did the weekend sports assignments and started doing high school and college football broadcasts. He would go on to be the long-time voice of UCLA Basketball program when the team won eight NCAA titles in his nine years with the team. Besides Olsen, Enberg would team with Al McGuire, Billy Packer, Don Drysdale, Tony Gwynn, and even the famed UCLA coach John Wooden.

Enberg is survived by his wife, Barbara, and daughter, Nicole. Though service information hasn’t been released, reports say the San Diego Padres have offered the family the use of Petco Park.

Has quietly been working at Bleeding Cool for over three years. He has written comics for Image, Top Cow, Shadowline, Avatar, IDW, Dynamite, Moonstone, Humanoids and Zenescope. He is the author of the Lucius Fogg series of novels and a published photographer.